Over the past fiscal year, the Louisiana State Employees’ Retirement System (LASERS) actuarial value of assets increased from $9.7 billion to $10.6 billion. This positive information was part of the annual actuarial valuation report for the period ending June 30, 2014, adopted by the LASERS Board of Trustees at its September 26 meeting.

On the local level, it is soup to nuts. Shreveport mayor and council races along with school board races are big choices for voters. Add to that Shreveport City Marshal and Public Service Commission and almost every Caddo voter has eight races to ponder.

What would you recommend? The woman is pregnant, and you have been told ahead of time this child is going to have cerebral palsy. You are told he will probably never speak, he will probably never walk, he will probably never talk, and he will probably wear a diaper all his life.

There is an old saying in politics that if you are not taking shots from opponents (and political critics), then you must not be doing a good job. Put another way, if you are getting some hits, then you must be doing many things well. Such is the case with Patrick Williams, who plans on being Shreveport’s next mayor.

The city is mentioned six times in the Old Testament and four times in the New Testament. When Sodom is referenced, it is always mentioned with a sense of foreboding and fear because it was an exceedingly wicked city. God destroyed Sodom with fire and brimstone.

District A encompasses the entire Cooper Road area (now known as Martin Luther King Drive area), North Highlands, Cherokee Park and a portion of Cross Lake. This minority district is one of the poorest areas of the city, and the MLK area has long lacked adequate roads and infrastructure, job opportunities, and a decent quality of life.

With those two definitions in mind, there are two important questions to ask. Number one, is faith alone enough to take you to Heaven? Number two, are works alone enough to take you to Heaven? The answer to both of these questions is, “No!” It is God Who offers salvation according to His grace.

Hopefully, the Shreveport voters will do what the Louisiana Judiciary Commission has failed to do: remove Shreveport City Judge Sheva Sims from the judicial bench. Terrell Myles qualified to run against Sims for Shreveport City Court, Division D; Sims is seeking re-election after serving her first (partial) term on the bench.